Episode 52 - Victoria Hardy on using her experience of surgical menopause at 33 to help others navigate the Big M in a new way
This time on the podcast I’m joined by Victoria Hardy (otherwise known as @GingeUnhinged on Instagram) as she talks us through her experience of medical and surgical menopause aged just 33, the breakdown that followed, and how she has used her experiences to help others going through the same situation feel less alone.
She has now gone one further and written a book ‘My Menopause, My Journal, My Rules’ to be the friendly guide and confidante that she would so dearly have loved 7 years ago…
We cover:
The process of going through first medical, and then surgical menopause in her early 30s, and how ill-prepared she was by the medical establishment
How the lack of support led her to a breakdown, then to therapy, where she turned her creative flair and a way with words into an outlet for processing her grief and trauma, that ultimately became a source of support for others on social media
Why connection to community on social media is so important
How and why she decided to write her book and why it’s different from most other menopause books out there already…not least because it’s partly a book you write yourself (40% of the books is journaling space - you’re even encouraged to rip out certain pages if you feel the urge!)
What was the hardest chapter to write - it might not be what you’d expect
You can find Victoria on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ginge_unhinged and the book is now available to preorder from gingeunhinged.com